Misunderstood
by anthropomorphychan
Summary: Tenten just shook her head and rolled her eyes, "Laugh all you want, but in reality you're the ones missing out. We had a lot of fun last Friday, me, Maru-kun and his 13-inch goodness." Shika/Ten  Friendship or romance? You tell me. :D Neji's here too!


**A/N: Nothing like a little bit of crackish fun to soothe the soul. I hope you like it as much as I did writing it. :P**

**Morphy-chan**

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><p><strong>Summary: <strong>Tenten just shook her head and rolled her eyes, "Laugh all you want, but in reality you're the ones missing out. We had a lot of fun last Friday, me, Maru-kun and his 13-inch goodness."

**Genre: **Humour/General (you could probably spy a _teeny-weeny _little romance if you squint hard enough - but I see it as more of a friendship thing. ;D)

**Disclaimer: **Don't own … unfortunately.

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><p><strong>Misunderstood<strong>

_anthropomorphichybrid_

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Ichiraku's was as busy as it was as any lunchtime, the owner and his daughter were busy with the preparations for the lunchtime rush. Seated on the wooden bench was Naruto as usual, accompanied by Shikamaru, Kiba and Chouji. With noodles hanging from the blond teen's lips and broth threatening to spill from his wide-open mouth, he half garbled half gestured animatedly about his pressing problems.

"Ro ru ree … " he paused, partially chewing before continuing, "I gunno har ror ray Rarara-ran rahent ranna ro row re re. I rerey ron't rungerrand ray renge's ror rorurar ran re? Re rahent reren rayk rurls!"

Kiba stared at him, "Dude. You've got some serious problems."

"Ray row rayt?"

"No, not about whatever the hell it was you were trying to say but your manners! Geez, and they call _me _the dogboy. You're even worse! Don't talk with your mouth full. If my mum sees you she'd skin you alive."

"R-rut …"

"Chew, man, chew. Then swallow. Then we'll talk."

The blonde finally shut his mouth and did as he was bid.

"So what was it that you were trying to tell us?" Shikamaru asked, whilst stifling a yawn.

Naruto wiped his face with an orange sleeve and said, "I was just saying I dunno why Sakura-chan doesn't wanna go out with me. I really don't understand why teme's more popular than me? He doesn't even like girls!"

"Troublesome," Shiikamaru sighed, "Why don't you just get over it Naruto. Clearly, women like her like the smart, good-looking, egotistical, dark, brooding type. Just look at Ino! You'd be better off targeting a completely different type, maybe someone quieter and less easily impressed."

Naruto frowned, his nose wrinkling in disgust. "But it's just not fair! I really like Sakura-chan. At least it's easy for you. It's not like there's someone you like anyway. You don't even like girls, you think they're too troublesome so it doesn't matter to you that they don't like you either."

Shikamaru's eye twitched. Despite finding women troublesome, it's not like he didn't care about that all. He's still a guy. And Naruto just bruised his pride.

"Hey Naruto! That's hardly fair to say," Chouji butted in, defending his best friend. "Shikamaru's just trying to help you out. And I think he's right.."

"You're just saying that because he's your best friend."

"Hey, hey! Chill there Naruto. The Shadowman's got a point. You've been after Haruno since … since …. Gah! I lost count. Get over her man!" Kiba said, trying to placate the blonde. "I mean, Shikamaru _is _a genius. I'd say listen to him."

"Just coz he's a genius at strategy and stuff doesn't mean he's any good at the romance stuff. I mean, he hasn't even had a girlfriend before. And girls don't even flock around him like they do to teme and Neji. Why should I listen to him?" Naruto retorted, annoyance in his face.

"If for some miracle I see a proof of him being successful at romance in any shape or form with at least _one _girl, then I'll take his advice and move on," he added, a successful smirk on his face.

Kiba scratched his head, "Well, that's a tough criteria."

Shikamaru just rolled his eyes before replying with indifference, "It doesn't take a genius Naruto to give the advice I gave you. If you don't want to listen to me, I hardly give a damn."

"And besides, we're only 15 Naruto, it's not like it's the end of the world if we don't have a girlfriend at this stage," Chouji added, trying to be helpful.

"Whatever. I still think the same and that's not gonna change." Naruto finished before turning head towards his ramen bowl again.

"Troublesome."

Shikamaru returned back to his own lunch shrugging away the previous conversation. It's not like he really cared. Really.

Their little lunch group was quiet for some time, with only cooking noises, Naruto's slurping and civilian conversation as the background sounds. Shikamaru was the first to finish his meal. He yawned, stretched then got up.

"I'm gonna go ahead now. I'll see you guys later."

The other three nodded at his adieu and watched as his spiky ponytail disappeared in the horizon. They were about to resume eating once more when the sound of sandals slapping across the pavement reached their ears. It stopped, right by Chouji. He looked up.

"Tenten-chan. What brings you here?"

"Oh hey Chouji!" She smiled at him, bright brown eyes twinkling, and face slightly flushed from her brief run combined with the heat. "I was just looking for Maru-kun. Have you seen him?"

"Maru-kun? Who's that Tenten-nee-chan?" Naruto interrupted, his eyes looking all confused.

She laughed, "It's Shikamaru silly. Shikamaru's too long to say and Ino's already got dibs on Shika so I decided to make one up myself."

"Hey! Akamaru might get jealous of him Ten-chan," Kiba teased, a flirtatious smirk on his face.

"Nah, he won't be. Akamaru is Maru-chan. Shikamaru is Maru-kun. See there's a difference." She replied pleasantly, completely ignoring the younger boy's subtle attempts. "But anyway, back to the point, have you guys seen him?"

Chouji shook his head, "You just missed him. He left not long ago. I'm not too sure where he went though."

Tenten unconsciously bit a lip before rolling her eyes, "I'd wager he's sleeping somewhere. I'll probably look for him by the meadows. Thanks anyway guys, if you see him tell him I'm looking for him."

"Sure, we will." Kiba replied for the three of them. "Just curious though, why are you looking for him?"

"Oh that. Nothing much really." She shrugged. "Just wanted to let him know I was free again this Friday and if he wanted to hang out at my house again. He's actually a pretty fun guy."

Kiba and Naruto stared at her. "Shikamaru? Fun? Are you sure we're talking about the same guy here?" Kiba asked. "I mean, I swear the only things he enjoy are sleeping, cloud watching and Shougi."

"Don't forget Go. He likes that stuff too." Naruto added.

Tenten lifted a perfectly arched eyebrow while putting her hands on her hips, "I'd like to let you know that there are other things that interest him. And if you know how to push the right buttons, you can see a whole other side to him – a pretty wild side I might add."

Naruto and Kiba looked at her, snorted, looked at each other then guffawed loudly. "Gawd, Tenten-nee-chan. You're just as bad as Chouji when it comes to defending him." Naruto wheezed out, tears coming out of his eyes.

Tenten just shook her head and rolled her eyes, "Laugh all you want, but in reality you're the ones missing out. We had a lot of fun last Friday, me, Maru-kun and his 13-inch goodness."

That shut the two up. Albeit temporarily.

"Say WHAT?" Kiba spluttered. "You a-and him? And his … his …" He squeaked, "13-inch g-goodness?"

Tenten blinked, "Yeah. Isn't that what I said?"

"U-um Tenten-chan," Chouji flushed slightly, "You know that stuff's probably not the best thing spoken out loud in public. It could lead to … uh … misunderstandings."

She cocked her head to one side, "What's there to misunderstand."

Naruto and Kiba's jaws dropped. "B-but why him?" Naruto asked, genuinely shocked.

"Why not him?" Tenten replied calmly, confused about the fuss, "If he has it then why shouldn't I ask him if I could use it? It's not like a forced him into it."

Naruto flushed an even darker red, a shade that could match the young Hinata's face. "I mean, what about Neji?"

"Neji?" she looked amused, "To be honest, I don't think he has one. Though I've never really asked him."

Kiba began to cough as he tried to cover his laughter.

"And teme?" Naruto asked.

"Sasuke? Well, from what I've seen, his one's pretty small. Smaller than Maru-kun's that is." She shrugged casually, "Besides, he's not much fun. He surprisingly has very little stamina for things other than training."

Kiba's cough began to turn into a choke.

Naruto retorted, "And Shikamaru has?"

"Are you kidding me? He's like a freaking machine. We went through like 40 rounds in two hours and he still wanted to keep on going. It makes my training with Neji look like child's play" Tenten smiled radiantly, "I've never seen anyone as … active as he is. And his techniques … wow. Amazing. His hands knew just which buttons to push – he's a natural. The wonders of being a genius, ne?"

"What's this thing about the wonders of being a genius?" a lazy voice drawled from behind Tenten.

She turned, "Oh hey Maru-kun. I was just telling this guys about …"

But before she could finish, two overly zealous idiots interrupted her. Pushing her aside, Naruto and Kiba charged at the unsuspecting Shikamaru.

"Damn it man, I never knew you had it in you." Kiba looked at him with awe and newfound respect whilst thumping his back heartily.

"Yeah man. Look, uh, I'm sorry about before. I'll take your advice and forget Sakura-chan. I think I might do as you say and find someone quieter like ... uh ... Hinata-chan!" Naruto added, admiration in his eyes.

"Hey, don't you go start dragging Hina-chan into this."

"Why shouldn't I? She's perfect for me! She's exactly what Shikamaru described I should go for."

"There are other girls more suited to you. There's no need for you to drag her _down_ Naruto."

"And like _you _could be any better for her." Naruto sneered.

"Oh hell yeah I am."

"Yeah right."

"I'll prove it to you."

"Oh no you won't. You're not dirtying Hinata-chan with your doggy paws."

"Big words for a little boy."

"Why don't we let her decide then."

"That's your first good idea ever. We'll just see who she'll pick.."

And with that, the two left, marching towards the Hyuga household towards an unsuspecting young heiress.

Shikamaru, Tenten and Chouji watched quietly as the idiots left, a mini dust wave left in their wake.

"What was that all about?" Shikamaru asked Tenten, confusion on his face.

"Well, I was just asking them where you were and we got talking about last Friday and your new and awesome as 13-inch screen for the GamePortal. I didn't know they didn't know you were into video games."

Shikamaru sighed and brushed his hand though his hair, "Well it's not something I really share around. It's not like it's anything to be proud of."

Tenten's eyes grew round. "Are you kidding me? You are like the best player EVER. Even the great Sasuke can't compare to your awesome battle techniques! I mean, the combos that you use are just amazing. The kick-punch-backflip-solar slash attack you did on our last round followed by that mean as frontal flip into my character's neck and then the quad roly poly finish as you snapped the neck, just ... WOW. You are a freaking natural! I couldn't even keep up."

Shikamaru uncharacteristically smiled shyly. "Well, thank you. Would you like to uh … play with me again, sometime this week?"

Tenten's smile grew even bigger, "Yes definitely! I'm free this Friday so you want to come over at my house? I'll make us dinner again."

"With those awesome deep fried wontons?"

"Yep."

"And homemade dim sum?"

"Yep."

"And your special fried rice."

"Yep."

"Perfect." Shikamaru grinned boyishly. "I'll see you on Friday then."

"Yep. Don't forget to bring it!"

"I won't. See you Tenten, bye Chouji."

And with that Shikamaru and Tenten parted ways, perfectly clueless of the chaos a simple misunderstanding about a GamePortal left in its wake.

Chouji just sat there, quietly contemplating on what had happened. "I guess, it couldn't hurt that much … can it? I mean, it's not like it was Ino who heard the misunderstanding. Yes, it will be fine." With that thought, Chouji smiled and resumed eating his cold lunch.

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**On the other side of town:**

"Are you sure about this information," a voice asked in a cold, yet deep and husky monotone.

"Yes! Yes! We're sure." Kiba and Naruto chorused, tears gushing out in a sturdy waterfall as they hung upside down from a tree, their arms bound in layers of duct tape. With nothing but boxers on, they were a sure spectacle.

"Very well then. Hanabi-sama, you may stop torturing the prisoners. You did a very good job there."

"Thanks Neji-nii," Hanabi grinned impishly, "You sure you don't want me to scare them some more?"

"No thank you. We don't want to lose these shinobis – yet. You are now excused from training. We shall resume again tomorrow afternoon."

"Sweet. See ya later then!"

Neji watched as his cousin skipped off towards the Hyuga household. When he was sure she was safely inside, he turned to the two hanging upside down.

"I want you two to stay away from Hinata-sama with the exceptions of mandatory missions. Should I hear anything about her fainting-spells at all … I will come and hunt you down personally. As for this other issue –" he hesitated slightly before continuing, "how _big_ did you say he was again?"

Kiba and Naruto looked at each other and gulped, a common thought in their heads. _'At least Shikamaru's not dying without some experience.'_

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><p><strong>Moral of the story:<strong> Video Games are bad for you. :P

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><p><strong>AN: Okay ... take it the way you want to take it. It's not a definite Shika/Ten or Neji/Ten ... I like both pairings so it's up to you to decide. :)  
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**1. I figured back in that time, they wouldn't have the luxury of big, spanking flat screen TVs (they didn't have TV's back then actually)… so I though, a 13 inch screen isn't bad. The innuendo wouldn't work anyway if it was WAAAAAYYY too big. :D**

**2. GamePortal ... well ... um ... I know it sounds cheesy but, hey! I thought it was a good alternative for PlayStation. **_/peace sign/_**  
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**3. I know I was a bit nasty to Neji (I still love him to bits, mind you :D) about the 'him not having one' comment but I thought it worked well. I mean, he's the one usually teased by fellow fanfictionists about being 'gay' and I figured, his family would probably be the type to either have 'the best of everything' or 'no technological crap – being traditional and all'. **

**4. I love a jealous Neji! **_/swoons/ _**As much as I love an embarrassed/shy Shika-kun. **_/peace sign/ _**AND TENTEN ROCKS! :D**

**Feel free to review. :) Thanks for reading!**

**Ja ne  
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